The true definition of education!

Basic education is the most important aspect of anyone's life, to be able to survive amidst the society especially in the current era. Illiteracy however, still exists; there are people who are unable to even read or write. Here is how a set of students from Bangalore took initiative to help such people with basic education, building their inner strength. Read on!

iU Literacy - an initiative of iU Cares Foundation, that focuses on the provision of basic education to illiterates, was undertaken and executed by the delegates of i3 season 10, Bangalore, India.

It started with the set of 20 young college-going students who pushed themselves to help those in need of the ability to read and write. Each of them who are just at the age of 19-23, has become role models to many in and around the city! The project execution began with, them going to slums and meeting people and asking if they knew how to write. The devastating ‘No’ melted their hearts to help bloom more lives.

“I went to slums, construction sites and vendors on streets, and taught them how to read and write their names in the regional language and in English. I asked them to come up with their own signatures which they could use for the rest of their lives. I taught the slum kids how to write alphabets, numbers, tables and their names in different languages. In order to make them attentive initially, I offered chocolates to every kid who agreed to learn from me. This motivated more kids to join in! Slowly, their interest got better and till date, they remember what was taught. That feels like the biggest achievement of my life! I also motivated parents to send their kids to schools. I played word building games with them to help improve their vocabulary” were the experiences shared by Rakshitha, 20, who managed to educate more than 1000 individuals in 7 days’ time, along with her regular college routines.

The campaign not only helped the people who were taught, but also impacted the people who taught. The delegates were more inspired every single time they helped someone learn something new. Education when given, is sure to educate the giver!

Monika, who did not just teach the kids in her surrounding, but also began to connect with friends on social media, from different parts of the world, impacting more than 700 people from India, Zimbabwe, China and Sweden. Jayati Mattoo, a native of Delhi, currently pursuing engineering in VIT Bangalore also explored her potential to the fullest, by reaching out to children in slums, with the help of friends who assisted her in translating. This act certainly proves that language can never be a barrier to achieve anything, if there is passion to achieve it. Jayati became the reason to educate more than 184 children in slums.

Creating an impact of 1700+ people through her project, Reshma IH was the tagged the best performer of the week. She also taught children the trick to easily learn any language, that is, to learn new words every single day. “It is said that learning 3 new words of a language everyday can help learn 70% of the language in a years’ time. I shared the same tip to the children who can learn from any school going student nearby. I have also promised to meet and help them whenever time permits” are her genuine words of Inspiration.These examples describe the actual definition of education.

The campaign successfully resulted in providing basic education to more than 3500 people, who shall cherish their learning moments for lifetime, blessing these delegates who taught them and look back with pride every single time they ink!

Any facts, figures or references stated here are made by the author & don't reflect the endorsement of iU at all times unless otherwise drafted by official staff at iU. This article was first published here on 12th October 2016.

IJ Kavyashree

IJ Kavyashree is a contributing writer at Inspiration Unlimited eMagazine.